


Bonding

by SusieBeeca



Series: Rhotile [3]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Asexuality, Chemistry, F/F, Gen, Granny Fluorite, Knitting, Polyamory, positivity, relationship, threeway
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2020-10-12 09:22:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20561975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SusieBeeca/pseuds/SusieBeeca
Summary: Rhodonite knows she loves the Twins, but she's still nervous about their relationship. And who better to ask about relationships than Fluorite?





	Bonding

_“It’s okay.”_

The ocean water sluiced up by her feet, and Rhodonite tried not to bristle. Six months they’d been on this planet, and she was still so jumpy. When the water bubbled away from her, she steeled herself with as deep a breath as she could force out, and then plastered a big smile on her face.

_‘Go on. Just walk up and ask her.’_

And there she was.

Fluorite was splayed out across the coastline, but all of her eyes were focused and squinting at the tiny laptop Lars had given her. Rhodonite hesitated. She shuffled to the side until she could see what was on the screen.

She’d opened a TooTube video of a cheery-looking human holding two needles. Fluorite reached down and pressed the “play” button. The face on her screen brought the needles closer to her camera and chirped “The next step is easy! You just slip the next stitch, loop, and purl-wise!”

With a grunt of effort, Fluorite clacked her needles together. The tangled mess of yarn below her drooped.

“Purl two, slip a knot, then next!” the human TooTuber said as she flashed another few lines of her project. “See? It’s easy!”

“Easy… for… you.. to say,” Fluorite groaned as she looked at the monstrosity that had coiled below her needles.

“Fluorite?”

She gasped, but when she saw who had spoken, the worried look on her face drooped back into her usual genial smile. “Oh! Rhodonite,” she said peacefully. “How… nice… to see… you.”

“Eh… heheh.” She paused, fumbling a hand at the back of her sweaty hair. “Did I interrupt something?”

Fluorite pressed the pause button with a quiet tutting noise. “No. I was… merely… trying a… human… pastime.”

Rhodonite bit her lip; she’d seen the screen, and she’d seen her friend’s attempt at replicating the human’s craft. Whatever the TooTuber had been working on was miles away from the snarl Fluorite was picking at. “Um. That’s a very nice… sock?”

“You’re… too kind.” Frowning, Fluorite held her handiwork up to inspect. “I… don’t know… what a ‘purl’… is… but I… think… I made a… mistake.”

The sand shifted beneath her feet, and Rhonodite swallowed. “Uh. If you’re busy, I can come back later…”

“No… no. Please, my… dear.” Placing her knitting down, she turned her face towards Rhodonite, and her smile grew. “Do you… need… to talk?”

The sand crunched below her as she twisted. Something inside her was screaming at her to flee, but she forced herself to keep still. “Uh. Um. Yes.”

“Then… please?”

Both of her gems began to throb, but Rhodonite had practiced this so many times before; she took a deep breath, ground her hands into fists, and braced her heels against the soil beneath her. _“I wanna ask you about relationships!”_ she blurted.

Though Fluorite looked startled, she quickly recovered, and her care-worn faded back to a grin. “Oh?”

“I…” She had to wrap her arms behind her to keep from fidgeting. “I… I mean…”

“Please, my… dear… Rhodonite. What is… troubling… you?”

And then the dam burst. “I don’t know what to do, Fluorite! I… I know I’m in love with the Twins, but… but they’re in a relationship! I’M a relationship! I… how can I possibly be in love with them?!” Her throat suddenly spasmed and it felt as hot as a starburst. “This makes no sense!!!”

The hand on her forehead was calm and cool, and it made her panic tick down a bit. When she opened the eyes she hadn’t realized she’d closed, Rhodonite found herself looking up at the soft, warm, loving face of her longtime friend.

“Why… is this… causing you… such… distress?”

Her spine buckled and she stared down at her feet. “It shouldn’t!” she said, her words wet and loose and blabbering. “I mean… I don’t… I…” Then she turned up with tears in her eyes. “Fluorite, _help me!_ I’m a mess!”

It took a moment, though every second that ticked by felt like slices in Rhodonite’s soul. Her fear and anxiety were starting to pulse deep within her…  
And that’s when Fluorite spoke. “Oh… you… poor thing.”

She could have choked.

Fluorite carefully closed the laptop and then put her knitting down. With a hand on her chin, she gazed up at the dimming sky as she pondered; just as Rhodonite was about to rephrase her question, her friend finally spoke.

“My… dear,” she began, “Think… of… molecules.”

Rhodonite blinked.

“There are… hundreds… of atoms in this… glorious universe.” Still gazing away, Fluorite folded two of her hands, letting the other ones rest on her belly gem. “Some only… bond… once or twice.” The little creases on her cheeks deepened with her smile. “Carbon… for example… can bond over and over again. It can… create… many lovely… things.”

Rhodonite couldn’t help the twinge of resentment that twisted inside her. “Like _Diamonds?_”

“Please, my dear. Have _patience._”

With that deep chuckle that only came out when she was on one of her tangents, Fluorite reclined against the ground and let her body curl around itself. Though her upper eyes were still sharp and clear, the lower ones were misty. “Some atoms… normally only bond two… at a time. This is… natural… and… wonderful.”

Realizing this could take some time, Rhodonite sat down and crossed her legs. Her hands, however, were fiddling with each other, a desperate struggle to keep her nails out from between her teeth. “And?”

“Helium… bonds… to helium. Two… little things… sharing a life.” Tilting her head to the sky, Fluorite put a hand to her cheek. She looked so wistful. “And… many other atoms… get drawn… to others.”

Some tiny, faded part of the back of her mind was lighting up, but Rhodonite still couldn’t quite put the pieces together.

“Have… you heard… of the… noble gases?”

Her brain snapped _‘Of course I do; I’m not an idiot’_ but her mouth said “Yes?”

Fluorite tittered. “You see… some… atoms don’t… ever bond. And… that’s… okay.” Then she picked up her knitting. Poking at the one line she’d managed to do correctly, she added “Sometimes… a beautiful thing… can only happen… with multiple strings.”

The cold knot of anxiety in Rhodonite’s gut suddenly jumped, and then… well, she wasn’t sure if it loosened or warmed, but for whatever reason, it felt comforting.

“Some gems… find love… with _one_… other gem.” She tugged the yarn, and the snarl popped out. After fumbling a moment, she tried another stitch, and this time got it right. Flashing Rhodonite a smile, she went on: “One atom… alone… is fine. Two… atoms… together… is fine. Many atoms… all… working together… is fine. Don’t you see?”

Though there was a lump in her throat, Rhodonite somehow blinked without spilling tears.

“Without… all those… different types… of bonds… and… without… atoms… who never bond… this world would not be… as… beautiful… as it is.” Gently, Fluorite touched Rhodonite’s elbow. “Do… you… see… my dear?”

Her ankles were starting to cramp. Rhodonite shot up to her feet, not even caring that she scuffed the sand around her. She tried to speak---a little “ffff” sound came out---and then, with a squeak, she found her voice again, laced with emotion as it was. “OH MY STARS! That---that makes so much sense!”

Fluorite opened her mouth to say something, but didn’t quite make it in time. Rhodonite grabbed her by her shoulders and kissed her on the lips. The sound was wet and smacking. Pulling back, she shrieked “Fluorite, you’re a _genius!! **I love you!**_”

That hot, steamy sense of adoration she’d been trying to deny this whole time had just whistled like a kettle inside her, and she left her fellow fusion on the beach as she went galloping across the dunes. “Yes! Yes! YES!!” she screamed. “Yes! I’m in love! I love the Twins! We’re… we’re a molecule! I love it!”

And then her heels skidded to a stop.

“Oh, stars… I kissed Fluorite!”

**Author's Note:**

> :D


End file.
